Alpha: Book: Fire
by Elegon
Summary: The Empire has taken over; Blood-Benders have destroyed the Human and Spirit World. The Avatar has disappeared and left the worlds in complete dissarray. But, the last Benders in the world have banded together, fighting to reclaim their home.
1. Chapter 1: The Winds of Change

The gentle breeze flew through the salty, autumn sea air. The sound of leaves of yellow, brown, and red fell to the ground, only to be stepped on by walking passersby. The warm air became an obvious statement as the heavy weight of the sunlight beamed down on the inhabitants of the small gulf village.

The village was an amazing achievement of Asia; clear blue waters, warm coarse sand, and no pollution. Shore City held its name with pride as exiles drove in hordes to find sanctum in the peaceful town. The beaches were always full of homeless exiles and the villagers always kept away from them. One in particular, kept away from everyone.

Heat rolled across the ground as a single hooded teenager walked across the sidewalk, playing with a small black lighter in his hands. The lighter flicked to life, only to be blown out, then flicked to life and blown out again. The teenager began to smile as he watched the fire blaze and dim again.

He slowly raised his head up and slipped off the black hood of his jacket. He revealed his chocolate brown eyes and his mocha-colored skin. His tightly black, corn rowed braids came down to his shoulders, with clear beads to hold them together. The emotionless smile on his face seemed almost disturbing, but the glint of joy in his eyes gave way to a different persona.

He slipped the black lighter into his black jeans with red stitching on the side, making sure not to burn himself. He unzipped his jacket, realizing he was getting hot and revealed the red t-shirt underneath.

His eyes slowly fell upon a library, Shore City Complex. Its large structure of blue, grey and white adobe bricks towered over him in its three stories of scholarly dedication. The sides of the facility were decorated with murals of wolves and of tranquil nature scenery.

He slowly walked toward the entrance of the library, knowing that if he was caught he could be put out. He peeked into the empty halls of the building and caught a glimpse of the brown adobe walls, plastered with pictures and awards of sport teams at Shore City. He crept into the facility, taking a very defensive tension to his movement and watched all around him.

He seemed to move like a sable blur around the library, slipping to and fro from one hallway to the next. His movement was swift and graceful, never making an unnecessary sound or being caught. The mocha-skinned teenager stopped moving as he came upon a simple oak door, and snuck inside.

This room was different from all others in the school, because it was kept in only his hands. The walls were painted a tranquil red and the floor reflected the color in its wooden tiles. The corners of the room held instruments, easels, and classical novels, still in perfect condition.

He walked toward the front of the room, plugging in an iPod speaker and putting in his iPod. He walked to the back of the room, opening a cabinet and pulling out five red candles. He sat in the middle of the tile floor, placing the candles around him in the shape of a pentagon.

The speaker came to life, playing a soundtrack of calming tranquil sounds, as the teenager lit each of the candles with his lighter. He places his hands together, concentrating on the flames and closing his eyes. He breathed in deeply, allowing the fumes of melting wax and smoke to fill him.

The room began to slowly heat up, making the air move in ripples and the floor steam. The teenager kept an emotionless face as he motioned his hands toward the candle in front of him, mouthing something incoherent. He split his hands apart and pointed at the candles beside him on both sides, quietly repeating what he said. He moved them behind himself, pointing at the last two candles, repeating his chant.

He brought his hands together, his left balled a fist, and his right kept openhanded and sitting on top of his left. He exhaled, releasing a tremendous amount of heat and smoke from his nostrils. The ground around him began to steam, while the flames on the candles began to explode into a wonderful red blaze.

He raised his hands, focusing on the flames and began to move them upwards from their candle wicks. His face beaded with sweat as he slowly began to lose focus, and the flames began to sputter. He gritted his teeth together, trying to keep up the heat, but he gave out a long exhale and the fire died.

His eyes slowly opened, as the wax around him formed a large red circle and melded together. The air in front of him bended, creating a figure he believed was an illusion. His pale blue skin, long white hair and old man features calmed him down, but made him feel ashamed.

"Keep trying young bender," the man laughed. "Fire is wild. It does not want to be controlled. Some times, it is easier to make than bend."

"Yes Master Iroh," the teenager replied. His voice came out in an angry, yet incredibly defiant tone with the subtle undertone of genuine respect for his Master.

"You shall grow to learn the spiritual side of Firebending soon," Iroh comforted. "I feel we may not have much time. Trouble brews in the Spiritual world. Without the Avatar, the bridge has fallen and the spirits have not taken it well. The Blood-Benders in your reality have destroyed the world and the Earth is very upset."

"Yes Master," he replied, understanding the state of danger the world was in. "But, without the Avatar, how do we repair the bridge and drive out the Blood-Benders?"

"That is up to you to figure out," Iroh frowned. "Unfortunately, it seems I am still unable to sense any other Firebenders. You may be the only hope left, do you understand?"

"Yes Master Iroh," he repeated. "I will do my best to save my people. But, my training isn't going fast enough. I play defense and train, while the Blood-Benders destroy the world around me."

"This is not an easy thing for you to do," Iroh spoke," I understand. My own nephew was impulsive, just as much as you, Jarvais. I will only give you council and advice, helping you on your own path to your destiny, but it is your choice to make it a peaceful one or a vengeful one. This is your decision to make, young bender."

"Yes Master," Jarvais answered again. "I will do what I can to save my people. I hope you understand, my Master."

"I wish you luck on your journey," Iroh smiled. "Whenever possible, I will contact you, but with the Spirit World in unrest, it may be hard. I will continue the search for the Avatar here, but you should find help in case our worst nightmares our true, and the Avatar is no more."

With those last words, Master Iroh vanished from the teenager's vision. The wax melted into the tile, disappearing and leaving the wooden tile bare once again. Jarvais began to stand when he realized their was a person standing at the door, smiling.

He looked at Jarvais with strangely excited brown eyes, brown freckles that contrasted with his Asian skin, and black hair. He wore a thin yellow shirt and white yoga pants, with red wristbands and blue arrow tattoos showing on his hands. His wristbands concealed brown sticks that resembled folded fans.

"Hello, I didn't mean to scare you," he said. His voice sounded calm and sincere, but Jarvais had his fists clenched in an instance, ready to attack. "I saw you meditating and I didn't want to disturb you. I'm Andrew Ngyuen and from what my Master told me, you must be Jarvais Stone!"

Jarvais' eyes flew up in shock at the mention of his name. He didn't give Andrew another chance to explain himself as he slammed his fist together and started another fire, directed at the strange Asian.

Andrew leaped into the air, twirling and keeping himself afloat, longer than a normal human should be able too. He landed back on the ground with great ease, falling like a leaf in the wind. Jarvais growled at him, knowing that this kid wasn't just human.

"Listen," Andrew pleaded. "I'm an Airbender! I need your help. My friend was captured by the Blood-Benders and I'm afraid they'll kill her soon, unless I can go in and save her."

"An Airbender?" Jarvais asked, amazed. "I don't believe you!" The Firebender charged at Andrew, clenching his fists and ready to blast the Asian into the wall. Andrew surprised him by moving his hands in a circle and sending a powerful blast of wind that tossed the African into the ground.

"Would you stop and listen, we don't have much time!" Andrew begged. "I can't go in alone, and Master Tenzin said you're the only one that can help!"

"Do not disgrace the name of an Airbending Master!" Jarvais warned. He slowly stood up and thrusted his right fist forward, sending another wave of fire at Andrew, but the Asian dispersed the flames with his winds, only to be blindsided when Jarvais tackled him.

"Let me go!" Andrew yelled. He bit his teeth into Jarvais' forearm, getting him to grunt in pain and let him go. "I don't want to fight! I'm just trying to get some help! What do you want from me?"

"Prove you're not working for the Empire," Jarvais snarled. "Then I'll consider giving you my attention." Andrew pulled up the left sleeve of his shirt and revealed an etching of a lotus flower on his blue arrow tattoo.

"Now do you believe me?" Andrew asked. Jarvais stood up and looked at the emblem, amazed that the Asian had it. "I need help, are you willing to rescue my friend with me?"

The teenager heard his Master's voice in his head, reminding him that he was going to need help defeating the Blood-Benders. "Where is she?" he asked, ready to help.

* * *

Andrew and Jarvais left the Library; traveling into the major port of Shore City and finding a prison ship with a large insignia of a blood red eyeball; the teenagers snuck aboard, hiding in a bilge chamber below the deck and surrounded by water on all sides.

"Where's this thing taking us" Jarvais asked. He left his jacket back in the Library, so all he wore now was a crimson red shirt with an ancient insignia of the Fire Nation from the dark days of war. The only thing he had to protect him were two gauntlets on his arms with the Fire Nation insignia.

"It'll take us to a small island in Liao Xia," Andrew answered. "That's where their main detention center is for any rebels of against the Empire." The Asian sat calmly on the ground, smiling his ridiculous smile.

"You stay here, I'll go search the ship," Jarvais told him. Andrew only nodded his head, while Jarvais snuck out of the bilge and onto a lower deck.

The entire deck was full of jail cells, each one holding a rebel, an exile, or a convict. The first cell Jarvais saw held a young woman, crouching over something in her hands. The teenager looked inside, only to realize the woman was holding a bloody stillborn and a rusty knife. He stood back, doing his best to keep walking and forget what he just saw.

The next few cells were empty, but Jarvais found a body crouched into the corner of a cell. He looked in, wondering if the guy was alive or not, when the man jumped out at Jarvais, trying to claw through the bars and screaming in a blind rage about taxes.

The sound of heavy footsteps came from down the halls, getting Jarvais to realize that officers were on board. He jumped off the bars of the cage and the walls, latching onto the ceiling to hide himself.

The officers filed into the room, wearing black robes with blood red lining, their heads were covered with a black helmet with the symbol of the bloody eyeball on the center; Blood-Benders. Jarvais kept himself from growling at them, knowing it wouldn't be smart to give away his position and ruin the entire rescue mission.

"What's wrong with you?" the officer screamed at the prisoner. The man kept screaming and clawing at them, but he was looking up the entire time. One of the officers clutched his own hands, stopping the man and silencing him completely. Jarvais watched as the officer slowly moved and forced the man into the corner of his cell, using his Bloodbending to force his will upon the prisoner. "Now, stay there and shut up, or else I'll be back to break your arms and legs."

The young Firebender couldn't stand it anymore, freefalling from the ceiling and slamming on top of the second officer, knocking him out. Before the first Blood-Bender could take a chance to move, Jarvais created a firestorm with his hands, burning the man and gaining his screams of agony.

The Pyrokinetic grabbed the unconscious man and snapped his neck, killing him instantly and quickly. He inspected the other, but it was evident that he would die soon, so he left him alone. He felt his arms contract and his body stiffen, realizing too late that another Blood-Bender was in the room.

He was forcefully turned around and dragged closer to the officer who stared him directly in his eyes. Jarvais tried to move but his arms and legs were completely restrained, making him incredibly agitated and getting his heart to speed up. He had only one fear, being unable to move or even stuck in tight spaces.

"You bastard," the officer spat. "How dare you board my ship and kill my officers! Give me one single reason I shouldn't kill you right now." Jarvais felt the restraint on his mouth loosen; her first mistake.

"I am a Firebender!" Jarvais' eyes went crimson and his mouth exploded into flames, engulfing the officer and gaining his freedom. The officer fell to the ground; her entire face burned away and revealed her skull, blackened with ash and soot.

Jarvais dragged the bodies, throwing them all into the back corner of an empty cell, but before he could leave, the prisoner tried to move to the bars. The Firebender moved back to the man, looking directly into his eyes to try and calm him.

"Please, help us," the man begged. Jarvais nearly laughed at the thought of helping this man; the exact person that almost gave him away for no reason. But, he understood what it was like to be restrained in a cell and oppressed by those that were more skillful than you.

"I'll do everything I can," he promised. "Stay quiet and pass the word around. The Avatar is gone, but the benders are going to save you." The man felt his heart calm at those words, as Jarvais walked away from the cell and back into the bilge.

Andrew was worried about Jarvais when he heard the fighting, but when he saw him drop into the small chamber, he was instantly relaxed. The Firebender walked in, looking both tired and grief-stricken. He slumped against the wall, before acknowledge the Airbender's blank stare.

"Some Blood-Benders are on board," he began. "I kicked some ass, and killed about three of them. The prisoners in here are psychotic; one has trauma; I think one killed her baby. Oh, and I sort of told one of the prisoners to spread the word that benders are coming back."

"You did what?" Andrew asked, the smile draining from his face. "You can't spread that around! Didn't your Master tell you to stay hidden? The entire order of the White Lotus has only three live people; me, my friend, and you!"

"First off," Jarvais began," I can do whatever I damn well please. Second, Master Iroh told me to do what I felt was right and giving that traumatic man peace, was the right thing. Thirdly, I'm not a member of the White Lotus; I haven't completed my training yet. Lastly, after I help you, probably kill a few more Blood-Benders, and blow up a DC, I am out of your life and you're out of mine. Understand?"

"You're going to blow our cover," Andrew argued. "All of our years of training aren't going to mean anything if you screw them up in one single day!" Jarvais nearly started another fire in the bilge, ready to burn Andrew and let the girl rot in her prison cell, but he knew this might be the first step to taking out the Empire and no way could he pass up snapping a few more necks.

"Tell me," Jarvais asked," how exactly did your friend get captured?" The smug smile on his face revealed he had a precise guess, but he still wanted to know exactly what happened to this person.

Andrew went into the tale of how they were traveling across a river with a makeshift raft of ice. While floating down the river, they saw someone, but he ran away from them. A few minutes later, they were ambushed. Neither of them could handle the officers, but Andrew was able to escape and left his friend to be captured.

"Coward," Jarvais scoffed. "You're an Airbender, how could you not have taken them? Or at least ambush them and save your friend? Do you even know how to fight or do you float around all day like some featherweight idiot?"

"I tried," Andrew defended. "We weren't ready for an actual fight with Blood-Benders. We've never even met any before or had to deal with conflict. We trained in an abandoned Air Temple in the West."

"You have to be joking," the Firebender laughed. "You've been hidden your entire life in a Temple and now you expect to waltz in a DC to save your friend? Asian, you are going to get your ass handed to you on a platinum platter, but luckily you have the ultimate powerhouse of fire to help you. I'd stay on my good side, because after I get a chance to blow that place to smithereens, I'm hunting down anything or anyone that might get in my way to destroying the entire Empire."

"You're cocky," Andrew smirked. "You'll do fine with my friend, maybe you'll get along." The Pyrokinetic laughed, knowing he was still under the impression that he'd stay and help them after this was over.

The boat stopped, knocking the teenager around and surprising them. Jarvais stood up and peaked above the deck, seeing Blood-Benders filing below to take out the prisoners and lead them above deck.

Jarvais exploded the deck and startled the officers, before they were able to get any of the prisoners out of their cells. Before they got a chance to move, Jarvais created a large amount of smoke and ash from his hands, shielding him from their eyes and protecting him from their possible Blood-Bending.

Andrew crawled out from below the deck, only to have Jarvais grab him and drag him through the entire floor, with everyone coughing except Jarvais. They stood at the stairs leading upward, when Jarvais turned around and blasted a huge amount of fire from his hands and burned all of the officers and killed them.

Jarvais melted off the locks of the cells and freed the prisoners, getting a hug from the traumatized man and the woman with the stillborn. Andrew just watched from afar, amazed at how easily Jarvais helped all of those people and took out so many of the Blood-Benders with only one attack.

The Firebender lead them all to the top deck, only to find a few more officers and one lieutenant among them. She stood at the mast with her long flowing black hair, her caramel skin, and light blue eyes, glaring at her subordinates.

The mocha-skinned teenager gathered the energy in his hands and managed to send a bolt of lightning into a nearby metal bar, sending the electric current into entire steel framework of the ship and zapping all of the Imperialists.

Jarvais and Andrew ran aboard, stripping two of the officers of their uniform, and then pushed the rest into the ocean. The Airbender and Firebender put on the stolen clothes and told the prisoners to escape with the boat after getting off the ship.

The Detention Center was a large grey factory, with plumes of thick grey smog surrounding the small island. The factory was employed with hundreds of officers and convicts, but Andrew knew the main enemy here was the warden, Chelsea Smith. He heard rumors of here finding and killing exiles in cold blood without a single reason.

Jarvais grabbed the Asian by the collar on his robes and stared at him directly in the eyes. "You will not screw this up, got it? If you even so much as entertain the thought of running away, I will burn you where you stand, understand? You are an Airbender, the last of your people and if you so much as begin to think you're going to leave the fighting to me, I will end the entire line of Airbenders. So man up and get ready to enter Hell!"

Jarvais let go of Andrew and the Airbender finally took a moment to breathe, realizing for the first time how scary the mocha-skinned Pyrokinetic could be. He hesitantly followed the Firebender into the Detention Center, managing to keep himself calm and not do anything to agitate the unstable teenager.

The halls of the Detention Center were more depressing than the outside; bleak grey walls, screams of torture and wails of pain. Jarvais kept moving, not taking a moment to look at any of the prisoners, leaving behind small packs of gun powder near any lanterns on the walls.

They walked down several hallways and found another officer that told them to go secure two prisoners in solitary confinement and bring them to another ship to be transported to Empire City; and they both knew that was worse than a death by blood draining.

The benders had to find the prisoners in the lowest part of the entire facility, in a below ground chamber, surrounded by nothing but dirt and soul crushing steel. Their were only two cells and in them were the two prisoners.

"Crystal!" the Asian yelled in excitement. Andrew ran to the cell on the left when he saw his friend. She ran to the bars, her brown hair flowing to her shoulder blades, while her Salvadorian tan and sea green eyes reflected the joy she held. She wore a sea green t-shirt with blue jeans and brown waist belt to hold it up.

Jarvais looked into the other cell to find a boy meditating on the ground. His tussled blonde hair and calm hazel eyes gave Jarvais shivers up his entire spine, making him incredibly uncomfortable. His forest green shirt and brown wooly pants, made Jarvais suddenly acknowledge something.

"You're an Earthbender!" Jarvais realized. The sounds of alarms filled the entire base and the Pyrokinetic knew that was a bad sign. He heated his hands and melted the bars of the prison cells, breaking out Andrew's friend and the incredibly calm boy.

Jarvais threw the boy over his shoulder and ran back up the stairs, with Andrew and Crystal behind them. The sound of frantic screaming was heard throughout the base, while Jarvais threw a fairly large supply of makeshift bombs down into the basement area, along with a few torches.

Andrew stopped moving, almost making Jarvais launch a full assault on him, when the Firebender's entire body stiffened. A blonder-haired woman walked in front him, smiling while keeping her hands above him, as if playing with a puppet.

"Really?" she laughed. "You thought you could break out _my_ convicts? Don't you know who I am? I am Chelsea Smith, the warden of this facility. The best ever known to keep a smooth running Detention Center in the entire Empire."

Crystal and Andrew both stood back, gulping, but not moving. Jarvais cursed them both, unable to help or even try to put up a fight. He could feel his blood boil with rage and he felt a sudden rush of adrenaline at the thought of being put in a prison cell.

Chelsea grunted, somehow able to feel an extraordinary amount of heat flooding into her body. Was it coming from this child's blood? That wasn't possible; no one could do that, unless.

"Of course, you're a Firebender?" she smirked. "You actually thought you could sneak in here, and break out your friends, just because you're a Firebender? You make me laugh. I thought the entire line of Firebenders was extinguished, but if you really are one, than I guess I should fix the problem."

Jarvais felt his body nearly being ripped apart, when he dropped the boy off of his shoulders and the warden bended him into an agony of pain. The boy hit the ground and slowly opened his eyes, realizing he wasn't in his cell anymore. His shirt ripped, revealing the sign of the White Lotus on his left shoulder.

"Oh, is this a breakout?" he asked, still in a daze. "Looks like you guys are having some trouble. Let me help, by the way, my name is Wesley!" He slammed his feet on the ground, gaining a hard stance and motioning the rocks in the walls out. He slid his right foot across the ground, moving the earth beneath Chelsea and trapping her in a hole and covering it with rocks.

Jarvais felt his body loosen and he regained control of himself again. He made a mental note; Blood-Benders have to be able to see the person their bending to have control over them. The Earthbender gave a hand to Jarvais, helping him up and making sure he was okay.

"You bastard!" Jarvais created a whole explosion of fire, almost hitting Crystal and Andrew, but the Earthbender shielded them with a wall of concrete. He motioned the wall, putting ball-shaped gloves on the Firebender and stopping the tantrum.

"I told you to fight!" the Pyrokinetic yelled. "She almost killed me and you didn't do shit to help me! Fine! I hope you can get your ass out of here on your own, because this entire place is about to explode!" Jarvais amazed himself as he heard the sound of his bombs exploding from the basement and he willed the flames around his gunpowder bombs to ignite.

The Earthbender split the ground opened underneath them and they dropped in. Jarvais smashed the makeshift cuffs against the wall, breaking them and freeing his hands. He tried to grip the sides of the hole he was in; hoping to climb out, but the Earthbender sealed it off, trapping him inside.

"Calm down," the Earthbender told him. "If you had stayed up there, you would've been crushed by all that debris and steel. At least we can get out of here on our own now. Light a fire, maybe I can figure out a way to land." Jarvais snapped his fingers, incredibly reluctant to help anyone right now, but he sent a death glare at Andrew and Crystal.

"What do you want?" Crystal asked the sound of disgust and smug in her voice. "Draw a portrait, it'll last longer." She flipped her hair, exposing the White Lotus symbol on her left arm. If she was a real Waterbender, than it only made sense that he'd have a problem with her.

"I'd like to know how two benders are too cowardly to fight," he snapped. "Bunch of weak fools, can't even stand on their own two feet against one Blood-Bender. I haven't even finished my training yet, but I was the only one who was willing to destroy an entire facility on my own. No wonder the Avatar's gone missing, who'd want to be stuck around you prissy bastards."

"Chill out," Wesley said. "Not everyone is okay with snapping necks and crushing people. Just because you went a little blood crazy, doesn't mean everyone else should follow suit. Oh, wait." He pushed his hands against a side of the hole and broke through it, revealing a dark chamber of the facility.

Jarvais threw his flames, hitting a torch and lighting up the entire room. Everyone looked in complete awe at the sight of the museum in the chamber, Antiques of ancient weapons, and old machinery of past Nation warfare, filled the room.

Jarvais walked in, finding a brown scabbard with a black sword inside, in perfect condition, and strapped it on his back, excited to have it. He found a long brown staff with the insignia of the Air Nomads and threw it at Andrew, along with two waist jugs with the insignia of the Water Tribe and tossed them at Crystal.

"Those Imperialists stole all of this equipment," Wesley sighed. "So many years of tradition, locked underground in shame. The antiques are the legacy of a great era of amazing benders, how could this have happened?"

"Come one, we should get out of here," Jarvais said. "Get us back to Shore City. I need to talk to some old friends." The Pyrokinetic grabbed the torch and led the teenagers into the direction of Shore City, with Wesley moving the Earth to give them a path.

* * *

The teenagers surfaced above ground, somewhere in a forest, but Jarvais recognized the terrain, only a few miles away from his hometown. They all sat down, taking a break and absorbing in the beauty of the flora and fauna.

The Firebender walked away from the others, letting them talk to each other and laugh, while he found an open clearing, void of any trees, bushes, or rocks. He burned a large circle around him, and then made markings in the ground that resembled the four Nation emblems. He stood on the Fire Nation emblem and held out a flame in his hands, hoping he'd be able to signal Master Iroh without his candles.

The air around him began to fog, turning into a pale blue and wrapping around the circle to shield it from any wandering eyes. Master Iroh materialized in front of Jarvais, smiling his joyful grin.

"Hello again young bender," he greeted. "You've never needed to seek council with me twice in one day. Is something wrong? Did anything happen?"

"I met three other benders," Jarvais explained. "An Airbender, a Waterbender, and an Earthbender. How is it possible that there are more benders than just me?"

"I have known for some time that three more benders were left in the world," Iroh admitted. "You are the last Firebender, just as they are the last benders of their element. We have found no purpose in allowing you to learn of each other's existence, until now."

"We?" the Firebender asked. The air swirled in a mighty breeze as three more figures appeared in front of each of the emblems on the ground. Jarvais recognized the spirit in front of the Water Tribe insignia as Master Katara; the spirit in front of the Air Nomad insignia was Master Tenzin; and the spirit in front of the Earth Kingdom insignia as Master Toph.

"Just as you were trained by the best Firebender in all of the Spirit World," Katara began," so were the others, trained by the best benders. Even we have yet to find the spirit of the Avatar or of any of his spiritual descendants."

"So," Tenzin spoke up," we decided amongst ourselves to help rebuild the world with the hope that the last generation of benders could stop the Empire and free the shackles of oppression on both the real world and the Spirit World."

"So man up hothead!" Toph yelled. "You might not like it, but this isn't a one man job! Crystal was the last Waterbender, even more amazing than Katara over here. Andrew learned Airbending faster than Tenzin could teach him. Wesley is the strongest Earthbender I've ever seen, and he's learned my best moves as if it was child play."

"The strongest four benders the world has ever seen," Jarvais awed. "But, if that is true, why won't they fight back? I almost died today, three times. Yet, if it wasn't for me, Wesley and Crystal would have been shipped off to die."

"Remember," Iroh said," you were the first one to want to take an offensive stand. I've trained you just as the other Masters did, to use your bending to help the world. But, you were the first to want to defend it by attacking the enemy. A move worthy of a Fire Nation general."

"Yes Master," Jarvais replied, happy to receive the compliment. "But, does that mean that this is the right thing to do? I met a man today, he screamed at me for no reason, almost got me killed, but he was at ease when he realized I was a bender, helping him get his freedom back."

"That should give you the ease of mind that you can do anything," Katara answered. "When I traveled with Avatar Aang, everyday was like waking up and having the hope of the world on my shoulders, but it was more amazing than anything. I was once even known as the Painted Lady and I gave so many people hope that things could get better with time."

"So I should keep doing what I'm doing?" Jarvais asked. "Does that mean I have to keep the others guys with me? No disrespect, but that sounds worse than being chained up and used as a puppet for the Imperialists."

"Quit whining," Toph snapped. "You want to protect Shore City and the exiles? Than get cracking and you better pray you can beat the wimp out of the others, or else I'll kick your ass when you get in the Spirit World."

The mists began to shimmer and shake, meaning something was wrong. "We must go," Iroh said. "Theirs trouble in the Spirit World. Remember young bender, only you can provide your own destiny. But, I've found some friends that might help make it much easier." With those last words, the Masters disappeared and the mist lifted from the ground, bringing Jarvais back to reality.

The Firebender nearly erupted into flames when he felt something crawl up his leg, but was surprised when he felt his face getting licked by a slender red and black ferret with black circles around his eyes. Jarvais picked him up, amazed at the Fire Ferret in his hands.

The sounds of rattled purring filled the air as a flying Lemur landed on Jarvais' head. Before the Pyrokinetic could do anything, he felt something nibble his legs and found a baby Badgermole at his feet. He picked up the small creature, only to have a small Lionturtle bite his ear and dangle like an earring.

Jarvais sighed exasperatedly, amazed that four extinct animals, not only existed, but all thought of him as a toy to mess with. He walked back to the group, getting confused glares from the other three benders.

"Where the hell did you go?" Crystal asked. "You leave for an hour and come back with a little circus? Wait, is that a Lionturtle? Yay! I always wanted one!" The Lionturtle released Jarvais' ear and ran—surprisingly fast for a turtle—to Crystal, while the Lemur glided around Andrew and landed on his shoulder and the Badgermole jumped out of the Firebender's hands, dug into the ground and popped back up next to Wesley.

"I talked with our Masters," Jarvais told them. "They advised me that it would be a smart plan if we stayed together and trained with one another. Master Tenzin believes that we can become the generation of benders that will be able to save the world from the Empire. Even Master Toph thinks it would be a good idea, but if that's going to happen, you guys are going to need some new training."

"New training?" Wesley asked. "We've completed any training we needed. I can actually visit the Spirit World at any time. What else could we possibly need to learn?" The animals all looked at Jarvais, running to a nearby rock to get away from a fight.

Jarvais gathered enough energy in his hands to make the air crackle with electricity as he fired a bolt of lightning at Wesley, but missed him, almost hitting Andrew, but the bender leaped above the air, narrowly missing it.

The Firebender didn't stop there; he launched himself into the air and blasted a wave of fire at Andrew, almost burning him alive. The Airbender created a tornado, protecting himself and dispersing the flames. While distracted, Jarvais was able to tackle Andrew, tossing him into the ground.

Wesley bended the Earth to make a slide, giving Andrew a safer way to land, but he regretted it when a bolt of lightning grazed the top of his left arm, almost severely hurting him. Jarvais slammed himself on the ground, creating a wave of heat that sent everyone flying backwards.

Crystal was forced to suck the water out of a nearby tree and sent it directly at the Firebender, but he simply evaporated it with his next blast of fire. Crystal felt herself being thrown against the tree at the shear power of the blast, almost falling unconscious.

"It took me less than a minute to defeat three benders," Jarvais scoffed. "Not only did you three have me outnumbered, you had all of your elements around you and you still failed. You were taught in the art of defense, but I learned how to fight with my bending. I might not have my spiritual training complete, but I can hold my own against three benders that have."

"I'm so not in any position to argue with that," Andrew said. "My butt hurts and I barely got a chance to do anything to stop him. I think it'd be nice to learn some new techniques, plus staying on his good side might be a real smart idea."

"Can't argue over here," Crystal agreed, trying to stand up. "Never met a single person like this crazy bastard. He blew up a Detention Center without a second thought and saved me from a prison cell. What's to argue with?"

"Okay, only if you stop destroying the environment," Wesley yelled. "I was put in there because I tried to stop them from cutting down the forest around Lake Laogai. Promise me that you won't burn anymore of the ecosystem, and you've got me on board."

"Then it looks like I just got three new punching bags," Jarvais sighed. The ferret ran at Jarvais, circling up his body until he found his place around his neck. "And a new scarf."

"Does anyone know what these guys eat?" Andrew asked, trying to calm down his lemur. Jarvais ignored the question, deciding to look back at the island of rubble and smiled; this was only the first step of a thousands miles.

* * *

_**Next Time on Alpha Book: Fire; Jarvais has to get used to the idea of having friends and introducing them to his hometown, but with an unexpected guest running a rampage, will he be able to keep his cool and convince them to fight?**_


	2. Chapter 2: Rise of the Sapphire Dragon

The sound of heavy footsteps flooded the forest. Lion-pigeons flew away in fear, frightened by the sound of running. The eager chipper of several animals alerted anyone that someone was in the forest.

The Firebender did his best to lead the others back to the city, while giving them a good hike as well. Andrew and Crystal were lagging behind, but Wesley was surprisingly keeping up with him, probably using the Earth to cheat, but Jarvais respected him for being so clever.

Andrew blasted a wind of air at the ground, creating a ball underneath him and allowing him to easily speed past the others. He stuck a tongue out, blowing a raspberry and taunting them, blowing a strong breeze behind him as he disappeared into the forest.

Wesley stopped, slipping underground into a hole and disappearing from everyone's sight. Jarvais and Crystal kept an eye out, when the Waterbender suddenly fell, tripping on a rock. The Pyrokinetic shot a blast of fire at the ground through his feet, allowing him to fly overhead and dodge anymore of Wesley's sneak attacks.

Crystal slowly picked herself up, realizing she was far behind from the others now. She uncapped the jugs on her waist and bended the water into a sled and froze it. She jumped on and willed it to soar overhead, catching up to Jarvais.

"Slowpoke," she teased, speeding past the Firebender. Jarvais snarled at her, blasting another burst of fire and moving fast enough to catch up to her. He gathered energy in his hands and sent a bolt of electricity at Crystal, but the bolt reflected off of the sled and hit the sky, disappearing into the clouds.

"You could've killed me!" Crystal yelled. She broke off a piece of her sled and sent a volley of ice needles at Jarvais, hitting him and grazing his skin, giving him fresh scars.

"Good!" Jarvais screamed. He rammed into her, breaking her sled and giving him time to evaporate the ice while Crystal was distracted with falling. The Aquakinetic fell to the ground hard, making Jarvais smile in victory as he blasted another burst of fire and flew ahead to catch up to Andrew.

The ground below Crystal split open and she feel in, landing in what surprised her to be Wesley's arms. Her stomach started to do flips when she looked into his eyes and blushed. Wesley smiled back, gently putting her down and moving underneath the ground with her, hoping to catch up to the others.

Jarvais swooped to the ground, realizing Andrew was much farther ahead of him than he thought. The Airbender forced his ball into the air, thinking if he stayed on the ground that Wesley could make him crash and crash hard.

Jarvais wasn't prepared for the sudden bounce from Andrew, or getting hit in the chest by him and thrown into the ground. The Pyrokinetic and Aerokinetic, fumbled into a tree, both startled by the sudden tackle. Wesley opened up the hole, popping out of the ground with Crystal, both laughing at the two boys.

"Are we done acting like children?" Wesley asked. "Because if my feet are right, I'm pretty sure Shore City is just behind those trees. By the way, do you have someplace for us to live or any food, cause I am starving like a hungry wolf-coyote. Plus, little Pike needs something to eat!" He pulled out the little Badgermole from his pocket, cuddling the little creature in his hands.

"I sort of got a place for us," Jarvais answered, trying to rub his head after hitting the ground with the Aerokinetic. "It's small and a little rustic, but I can make some room. But, I need to make a few stops first and find some food for Pyre." The Fire Ferret crawled out of Jarvais' shirt and circled around his head, making hungry sounds that were echoed by the other animals.

* * *

The smell of cinnamon, vanilla, lavender, and hundreds of other scents, filled the noses of the benders. The stands were full of employees working at the Bazaar to make money and sell their crops. Pyre led the other animals into a group purr as they sniffed the magical aroma.

Andrew's lemur leaped off his shoulders and flew into the Bazaar searching for something to eat. The lemur dived down, grabbing nuts and berries from a stand and attracting the attention of several fearful exiles and angering the merchants. Andrew redirected the wind under the lemur's wings and sent him flying back towards his shoulder.

"Don't steal Gale," he reprimanded him. "You have to pay for food, got it?" The Firebender pushed the Asian and his lemur into a bush, hiding them from a crowd of angry merchants and their customers, demanding to know where the thieving Winged Lemur was. The benders feigned ignorance, allowing them peace when the mob moved on.

"Can you please keep him under control," Jarvais asked. "I have a reputation for being unnoticed in this town and I'd like to keep it. I don't need you three to start attracting anymore unwanted attention." The Pyrokinetic helped the Asian stand back up, only to turn around and see several guys in front of him, glaring with an incredibly tone of arrogance.

"If it isn't our favorite loser," one of them teased, pushing Jarvais. He did his best to look as intimidating as he could with his dark brown eyes, flipped his short brown hair out of his face and pushing the Firebender again with his dark Mexican tan. Jarvais stood his ground, locking his eyes with the bulky bully and refusing to show a remote sign of weakness.

"Get out of here Blake," the bender growled. He tried to move past the boy, but he was intent on torturing the Pyrokinetic. He shoved Jarvais to the ground, laughing as he fell to his butt in front of Crystal. Pyre chatter in annoyance and Pike clawed at the boy, wanting to attack in defiance. "Why don't you just leave us alone and no one will get hurt."

"Theirs ten of us and only four of you," Blake laughed. "I know you don't go to school, but even your dumb ignorant ass can do simple math, right? Let me help you just in case, ten is more than four by a big amount, got that stupid?" The other guys laughed at Blake's joke, making Jarvais almost explode into flames, but the bender knew better than to do anything to blow what little cover he had after his previous expedition into the Detention Center.

"Why don't you quit picking on him," Wesley defended. "You're just a bunch of assholes, thinking you're so cool, but you're just a pathetic group of dumbasses." Blake grabbed Wesley by his shirt and pulled him closer, breathing his heavy breath against him and seething with anger. The Geokinetic flicked his finger, sending the ground under Blake backwards, slightly and just enough to make the teenager stumble and loosen his grip on Wesley enough for the boy to run back to his friends.

"Get back here you little bastard," Blake grunted. He lunged at Wesley, only to be intercepted by Jarvais and thrown sideways into the ground. Jarvais leaned over the teenager and Pyre spit on him, cackling in such a simple victory. "Now, I'm mad." Blake wiped the fire ferret spit off his face and cracked his knuckles, while the other guys surrounded the four benders.

"Blake," Jarvais chided. "Here's what I'm gonna do; I've been having a really nice day and I'll make a deal with you, leave us alone and you can go home fine; don't and you'll have to sit on your hands and shit out of your mouth after the ass kicking we give you." Blake laughed at the threat, unable to take the bender seriously, considering the few losers he was paired up with versus the number of kids on his side. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Jarvais snapped his fingers and a bolt of lightning fell straight down from the sky, hitting Blake and electrocuting him into an unconscious state. The other boys stared at Jarvais, shocked at what just happened to their leader, but the bender blamed it on a coincidence of nature. Pyre hissed and leaped off Jarvais' shoulder, landing on the face of one of the boys and clawing at it as best he could in a mad fury of fur and nails.

The Firebender grabbed one of the boys and head butted him as hard as possible, giving him a bump and rendering him unconscious. The mocha-skinned boy was unprepared when a sudden kick sent him forward and he collided with a fist, cutting his lips and knocking blood out. Jarvais slowly stood up, wiping his lip and scowling in anger. His nose began to fume smoke, but he forced himself to calm down before risking any further exposure as a bender.

The boy in front of the Pyrokinetic tried to punch him again, only to be stopped by Jarvais' left forearm and sent backwards with a punch to the gut. The teenager jumped up and sent his right foot into the diaphragm of another boy behind him, knocking the air out of him and sending him to the ground in a heap of groaning and clutching his chest.

The Firebender sent a small puff of fire through his feet and leaped in the air, kicking one of the boys in the side of his face and throwing himself backwards to tackle another one and send him to the ground. Jarvais lunged forward and sent his fist straight into the left eye of one of the few remaining boys left, giving him a thick black eye. The teenager barely avoided two of the other boys, when they tried to hit him from either side, but the Pyrokinetic ducked and allowed them to take each other out without any effort from his person.

Pyre jumped onto his shoulder licking his paws clean of blood as the other two boys were screaming trying to keep their newly scarred faces from losing too much of the crimson liquid. Jarvais punched them both in the gut, making them bend down straight into his knees, breaking their nose and sending them backwards, crying in pain.

"Let's go," Jarvais scoffed, walking away from the ten boys around him, crying and bleeding. The other benders just stared at he boy, while the animals cheered in victory for Pyre. Gale flew over Blake's pocket, pulled out a small bag of coins and landed back on Andrew's shoulder, giving the Asian the money.

"That's still stealing," the Aerokinetic told the lemur. Andrew sighed, taking out a few silver coins and leaving them on the merchant's cart, hoping he'd forget about the lemur after getting the money. Crystal glared at him, but Andrew still slipped the pouch into his pocket, walking away from the stand and both a confused Waterbender and laughing Lion-Turtle. "So, what can we get for them?"

"Since Gale eats berries and nuts, maybe we can just find some more stuff like that," Wesley suggested. "Plus, I'm a vegetarian and I'm guessing we need some food since you aren't living alone anymore, right?" Jarvais turned at the Geokinetic, smiling and laughing, only to get perplexed looks from everyone else.

"I live with my friend and my son," he explained. "I've never lived alone. But, we can pick up some stuff for you guys. Do you eat meat Waterbender? How about you airhead?" Crystal nodded her head in agreement, slowly trying to register what he just said. Who in Asia would want to have children with this mentally-unstable bastard?

Jarvais walked up to one of the stands, greeting the man and picking out some fruits, vegetables, and some buffalo-moose meat. He gave the man a small card, getting a very encouraging look from the merchants before packaging the groceries and taking them with him. Pyre leaped onto the stand, nibbling on some cabbage and making the merchant scream in frustration about his vegetables. Jarvais picked up the cabbage and the little ferret, leaving the man before any of the other animals decided to get their own food.

The Firebender led the other's to his home, a small rustic cabin, looking worn down from the outside, only for Jarvais to open the door and lead them into a strangely decorated home with small knickknacks around the house. Jarvais set the groceries down in a normal kitchen, letting Pyre roll the cabbage out of the bag and bring it to the other animals, so they could finally eat something.

"Daddy!" a voice cried out. A three-year-old boy ran out from one of the room in the cabin, jumping into his dad's hands. The little boy looked like a mirror image of his dad, his short black cornrolls and chocolate brown eyes made him look like a miniature version of his father, even the dark mocha-skin matched perfectly.

"You're finally back Jarvais," a girl said, walking into the room. The girl had long, curly brown hair, falling down to her shoulder, more dominantly than you'd expect from her kind smile. Her hazel eyes held a motherly glow that sent a warm feeling down your spine, but the way she was holding the large knife in her hand, sent a feeling of danger into everyone. "You brought hostages? I'm Jennifer Talos, and I hope my friend doesn't kill you before I can get the rugs down."

"Their allies, not hostages," Jarvais told her. "Guys, this is my friend and my son, Elegon. Jennifer, Elegon, say hello to Crystal, the last Waterbender; Wesley, the last Earthbender; and Andrew, the last Airbender." Jennifer opened her mouth in awe, unable to begin to register the fact that they're more benders other than Jarvais.

"Daddy," Elegon whispered," I think Auntie Jenny is trying to catch flies again." Jarvais gently closed his friend's mouth, knowing she'd be stuck like that for quite some time. "Did you kick butt today daddy?" Jarvais nodded his head, making the toddler giggle at the thought of his dad using his amazing bending skills to destroy buildings.

"I'll tell you all about it in a second," Jarvais smiled. "Go get your teddy bear and play with some of our new friends over there." Elegon's eyes glistened in excitement when he saw Pyre, rolling the cabbage around under him like a circus trick. The toddler jumped down, trying to catch the speedy fire ferret around the house.

"Whoa," Andrew gasped. "You actually have a son, but he's not super psycho like you." Jarvais threw his fingers forward, sending a weak bolt of lightning and zapping Andrew slightly. "Speaking of psychos, what's the deal with you and that Blake guy? He sounded like you really pissed him off. Truthfully, we don't know much about you, how'd you end up here in Shore City?"

"Blake's just some ass that likes to bully me because I beat him in a sword contest a couple years back," the Firebender explained, unpacking the groceries. "I came here after my old town was destroyed by some Blood-Benders and I brought Jennifer and Elegon, back when he was barely born." Wesley shook his head, feeling the vibrations in the ground and realizing the Pyrokinetic was lying.

"So, you're his mom Jennifer?" Crystal asked, confused. Jennifer laughed shaking her head no, before walking out of the room to help catch the toddler, whom was trying his best to grab Pyre and cuddle with him. "I'll just take that as a no. So, who's his mom then?" Jarvais looked away, a painful looking striking his face as he decided not to answer the question.

The Firebender pulled a pot out of the cabinet and put it on the stove. Crystal willed the water out of the faucet, separating all impurities before putting it into the pot. Jarvais set the stove ablaze, heating the water faster than normal. Andrew took out some vegetables and threw them in the air, using his Airbending to send several sharp waves of air and slicing the vegetables instantly, dropping them in the pot to boil.

"So you two can use your bending to cook, but not fight," Jarvais asked, confused. "Master Toph was right; I'm going to have to toughen you up. Maybe some more random ambush training is in order." Crystal splashed the water, sending it on top of the Firebender's head and drenching him. "Nice, get angry. That's where we need to start for your new training. You just need a plausible reason to fight."

Elegon walked back in the room, holding his teddy bear and tired from giving Pyre a chase for his life. The toddler pulled on his dad's legs, wanting to be picked and had his plea answered. Jarvais allowed him to rest on his shoulder, hoping he'd fall asleep soon. "Daddy, tell me the story about the Empire again."

"Okay," Jarvais laughed, knowing his son loved to hear it. "A long time ago, the Nations were at peace, trade was prosperous and nothing was wrong, until the day a secret tribe of Waterbenders appeared, taking over the leaders of all four Nations and blood-bending those to their own will. Even after the full moon disappeared, their bending continued to work, baffling even the Avatar.

"The United Forces and Avatar Kazanluk did their best to take back the Nations, but the United Forces were destroyed by secret double agents, working inside. Avatar Kazanluk went straight toward the hidden base of the secret tribe of Blood-Benders, never to return from battle and to be reported dead by their leader, Amon the Second, declaring the world under his control of the Blood Empire.

"One by one, the Blood-Benders traveled the world, sealing away the bending of any and all non-Waterbenders. Once they rid the Earth of other benders, they did the most disgraceful thing ever; they sealed away their connection to the Ocean, choosing to only bend blood, never water. This new style of bending became feared, not respected and sent millions to run into exile and hiding.

"But, a miracle happened, a single bender revealed his own powers to himself, Firebending. He swore that he'd fight until he restored the sanctity of bending to the world and brought the Empire down. Then, he begun his quest, destroying an entire Detention Center, and in the progress, discovered that there were three other surviving benders and now he would be able to save everyone in the world and bring the Empire down." Elegon began to snore, already falling asleep as soon as the story ended. Jarvais lied him down on his small bed, letting him sleep peacefully and calmly.

"It's scary to think about all the things the Empire has done," Crystal shuddered. "It makes me ashamed to be a Waterbender, and even more ashamed to think that on a full moon, I could do the same. But, that little kid does make me wonder about the future." The Waterbender sighed, leaning against the wall and bending a stream of water around her hand, trying to calm herself down.

"Peace can be found," Wesley said, sitting down on the ground and feeling the vibrations of the Earth. "It'll just take time and some reckless, thrill seeking destruction, courtesy of our leading Firebender. It seems Jarvais knows a lot about the Empire, I'm guessing from some earlier reconnaissance?" The Pyrokinetic shrugged his shoulders, mixing the pot of soup and heating up the pieces of buffalo-moose steaks. Wesley sighed, deciding to ignore the Pyrokinetic's unwillingness to answer any questions; instead, he slammed his fists together and the ground opened underneath, swallowing him into the Earth and closing up behind him.

"That's going to take some getting used too," Jennifer said, panicking at the thought of Wesley being sucked into the ground. "Jarvais, I've heard some rumors about someone sneaking around in the forests by the farmland; they've been stealing crops, destroying irrigation systems and tearing up the soil after they burn it away. Do you think its some Imperialists trying to scare us?"

"Would they really bother coming here just to scare you guys?" Andrew asked. "Doesn't it make more sense for them just to take this city hostage, after all Shore City is one of the few Exile sanctuaries left on the planet. Maybe we should have a stakeout and try to find the guy responsible for terrorizing the farmers." Jarvais stared at the Aerokinetic, shocked at the idea coming from the pacifist.

"Really now?" Jarvais smiled. "You want to go looking for a fight? Well then, this is going to be lesson number one in your new training. Tonight, we're going in the forest and I want you to find and defeat this terrorist." Andrew immediately regretted saying something, knowing he just dug himself into a hole that could probably get him killed. "Look kid, if you really want to bring the Empire down, you'd better be ready to deal with all kinds of mayhem and mischief that comes along with it. But, if you want to quit, go ahead and walk out that door; I'll just tell Elegon that you left because you were too afraid to fight."

The Airbender's heart dropped at the thought of disappointing the little kid. He grabbed the wooden staff from his back; slamming it into the ground and watching the glider erupt with yellow fans. "Let's do this." Jarvais smirked, happy to have found a reason to make the Asian fight alongside him.

* * *

Silence crept across the ground, leaving an uncomfortable stillness to the forest. The grass caressed their feet, softly crunching underneath them. The thin autumn air flew against their skin, making the Aerokinetic shiver at the chilling touch.

The Pyrokinetic scowled with an uncertain face of confusion; the area ahead of them was where the farmland was supposed to be, but all he saw were destroyed crops and flooded fields. The ground was covered in deep scratch marks, tearing through the soil like deep ditches. The crops were thrown around the fields, burned and shredded, as if a beast had eaten them.

Jarvais rubbed his hands against the scorched soil, unable to understand how the Imperialists could cause such minimal damage and not keep destroying the rest of the town. The ground radiated a warm feeling, as if it was just set ablaze a few moments ago. The Firebender sniffed the air, smelling burnt crops and ash flooding the ground.

"I saw something move!" Andrew yelled. The Aerokinetic pointed towards the trees, while a strange figure moved past them, sending leaves to the ground and leaving a scorched path of ash. Jarvais ran after the figure, with Andrew behind him, both benders getting their weapons ready to catch their newest target.

"Asian, use that air ball thing you did earlier and head him off," the Firebender commanded. "Try to get him to turn back towards me, and we'll take care of him." Andrew nodded his head in agreement as he spun his hands and willed the air underneath him into a ball. The Airbender flew off into the forest, following the trail of ash and claw markings on the trees.

The deep low growling filling the forest frightened him, but the sight of a long blue tail nearly made him pee his yoga pants. He started to slow down, hoping that he could just lie and say whatever this thing was, had gotten away, but the thought of disappointing Elegon—who'd probably want a detailed story of the fight—made him urge forward, even speeding after the terrorist.

The growling began to increase in volume and Andrew was able to see the flames on the ground, only to diminish as he passed over them. His air ball was finally able to catch up to the figure, only to make the Asian nearly stop in pure awe at the long, ghostly reptile tail. He sped forward, running alongside the tail and witnessing the huge reptilian tail elongate into a huge scaly body with large talons and a pale blue translucence. The Airbender readied his staff as he came up to the head, only to realize his worst fear was right; this was a dragon—with a huge head with teeth as big as his fists and sharper than anything he'd ever seen.

The dragon turned deeper into the forest, making Andrew leap off his air ball and latch onto his glider and fly on top of the flying snake. The Asian was amazed at how he watched the reptile swerve through the trees and make sure not to topple any of them over. He was almost ready to let the creature continue his course, until he saw that the dragon was on a path to an oil refinery and his jaws were ablaze with sickly blue flames.

The Aerokinetic flew straight down, diving right beside the beast's head and doing his best to grab its attention. Once the dragon's eyes began to look at him, his nerves nearly shut down, but the Airbender knew if he failed than an entire town would be destroyed in only a few seconds. Andrew's eyes grew a light yellow as the winds around him began to churn violently and he made a forceful curve that the dragon was unable to deter from.

Andrew flew straight forward, glad he was able to move the dragon from its course, but now the beast was chasing the nuisance. The Asian tried to act like it was only fate that allowed him such ease at moving the monster, but he felt a little pride at standing up against a reptilian behemoth and not backing down. It almost made sense to him why Jarvais always acted so touch at an impossible task; it was because he knew he could take it on head first and survive.

"Catch me if you can!" Andrew laughed. The dragon only growled as a response, letting off a tunnel of smoke as the Asian moved the winds underneath his glider and sped forward, giving the beast a run for his Yen. Andrew flew above the trees, gliding over the forest, only to watch as the dragon followed him and revealed his entire long body, which was even bigger than the Asian could have ever thought of.

The dragon roared with fire, letting his thunderous ruckus explode his sapphire blaze into the sky and send a serious chill into the exiles of Shore City, making them run out of their homes in fear as they saw the sky burst into flames. The dragon spun around the air, twisting into a diving screw and back into the forest, leaving the Asian alone.

Andrew dove after the beast, hoping he wasn't one his way back to the refinery, only to realize the dragon was going in the opposite direction; in fact, he was heading towards the Firebender. That was when he first sensed a dread of trouble and flew after the beast, realizing his mocha-skinned leader was in serious trouble.

The Pyrokinetic hadn't thought for a second that the Asian would actually be able to not only get the terrorist to move, but lead him back towards him successfully. He sheathed his sword, readying his body for a weak fight, only to witness the most amazing marvel he'd ever witness; the spirit of a dragon, the original Firebenders.

Jarvais greeted the dragon, with the standard Fire Nation salute as the wicked beast snaked around him, keeping him locked in a circle with no escape. The Firebender did his best to stand his ground, but the claustrophobic sensation of being unable to escape began to unnerve him and the dragon took notice. The spirit began to circle around the bender, getting closer and closer, until the Aerokinetic passed overhead, watching the beast make his constricting kill shiver with fear.

"Leave him alone!" Andrew warned. The dragon hissed, breathing a ball of sapphire fire at the Asian and forgetting about the Firebender. Jarvais didn't want to show any disrespect, but his ancestor had nearly brought him down in a single movement and he couldn't allow that.

"I challenge you to an Agni Kai!" Jarvais screamed, pointing at the dragon. The sound of horrific cackling filled the air as the dragon began to relinquish his plan to harm the bender. The trees began to burn away as the dragon created a field around them, giving him an easy view of his newest prey.

The dragon exploded his breath in a fiery mess of sapphire mayhem, forcing Jarvais to play defense and shield himself in an orb of crimson flames. The mocha-skinned teenager unsheathed his sword and leaped into the fire, parting it away from him and giving him a clear target as he brought his sword down, only to watch as the sharp blade harmlessly shredded through the spirit.

The reptilian behemoth shredded his claws against the skin of the Firebender, knocking him into the ground and brandishing his flesh with three marks on his right cheek. Jarvais gathered as much energy as he could muster into his hands and exploded with a single lightning bolt, hitting the dragon. The beasts only chuckled, somehow taking the blast of energy and redirecting it through his body and back at the Pyrokinetic. Jarvais grabbed the lightning, hoping to throw it back, but he hadn't fully learned the secret behind redirecting lightning and felt his chest explode with energy, knocking him into a tree.

The dragon circled around the weakened Firebender, laughing with a self righteous victory and smelling the delicious scent of human flesh burning. Jarvais slowly sat up, his eyes beginning to turn crimson, when the serpent eyed the child wearily, realizing the sudden potential he was withholding. The dragon flew straight into the air, becoming a tower of pale blue scales and flying straight back down, passing straight into Jarvais' body.

"Jarvais!" Andrew yelled, rushing into the clearing. The Airbender looked around, amazed at the sudden battlefield and the strangely glowing teenager, leaning against the tree. The Aerokinetic closed his glider and strapped it on his back, rushing to tend to the bleeding bender. "Are you okay? What happened to you? Wait, where's the dragon?"

"I'm here," Jarvais said in a creepily sinister voice. His chocolate eyes were replaced with soulless sable orbs as he smirked at the Asian. "For so long, my race was hunted down and killed for sport. Now, I'm back in the Human World and this new host is strong enough for me to take back my home and rid this world of the pest known as humanity."

"Get out of my friend!" Andrew's eyes glowed a deep yellow as the air around him began to spin into a vortex, sucking the benders into the air. The Pyrokinetic smiled as his mouth erupted into sapphire flames and he sent a blast at Andrew, only to be amazed as the flame disperse into the air. "Fire needs oxygen to live, but I can take away all of it. You have no power here; might as well leave then."

"Fool!" the possessed Firebender bellowed. He threw his had back and roared as his body exploded with lightning, striking the vortex and upsetting the winds. Andrew did his best to send the air to put out the sudden flash fires that his friend was creating, but he didn't have enough focus to do both and keep the spirit under control. "Catch me if you can!" Andrew lost control of the twister and fell to the ground as the possessed bender exploded his feet with fire and flew into the sky, heading straight for Shore City.

Andrew churned the air underneath him, creating another air ball and heading after the demon. Even with his enhanced speed, the possessed bender was somehow even faster than he was this morning. Unfortunately, the bender had spotted the Asian and fired a bolt of lightning at him, almost making him lose focus, but the Aerokinetic kept moving, knowing that he had to stop the Pyrokinetic.

Fortunately, the forest had begun to end and now Andrew had a clear view of the Firebender as he flew straight towards the center of the city. Before Jarvais could land, the Airbender leaped off his ball of air and sent it at Jarvais, throwing him to the ground and causing him to break down a cabbage cart.

The Firebender slowly stood up, realizing the exiles were coming out of their homes and watching the teenager as the Asian stood in front of him, holding Jarvais' sword—albeit not very menacingly. The crowd screamed in awe as the Pyrokinetic shot a ball of fire from his hand, knocking the sword out of Andrew's hand and revealing his bending abilities.

The Aerokinetic grabbed his staff and twirled it in the air, creating several high speed winds and knocking the Firebender to the ground. Andrew leaped into the air, slamming as hard as possible on the teenager's diaphragm and forcing a blast of fire to erupt from his lungs, filling the air with an intense heat and drawing an even larger crowd.

"Leave him alone now!" Andrew demanded. He tapped his staff against the teenager's chest, then both of his armpits and his kneecaps, seemingly doing no harm. He stepped off the demon, only to watch as the confused bender tried to make a puff of fire, but was amazed to see nothing come out.

"What did you do to my host?" the bender bellowed. The demon tried to stand up, but his legs were like jelly and fell back down with a hard thud. He threw his hands forward, barely making a puff of smoke and only created static when he tried to make a bolt of lightning.

"I'm a Chi Blocker," Andrew admitted. "Living in an Air Temple, I learned that Chi is what helps a bender move their element and I realized I could block it with a few pressure points. For the next few minutes you won't be able to bend, which leaves me open to give you a serious smack down, unless you leave my friend's body and he'll be instantly healed."

The teenager glowed a sickly pale blue as he exploded with the spirit of the dragon escaping him into the sky. Jarvais breathed in deeply, his eyes reverting back to their normal chocolate brown and gaining his body back from the horrible demon. The dragon flew straight back down, about to strike again, when Andrew began to leap in front of him.

"Wait," the Firebender told him. Andrew stopped, only to witness a miracle as Jarvais tapped the forehead of the dragon with his left hand and the nose with his right. His eyes exploded into a crimson glow as the demon began to disappear, leaving behind a wicked cackle and the sound of a thunderous roar. "So much for keeping a low profile."

"At least you're safe," Andrew comforted, helping the teenager stand up. "How'd you do that weird disappearing thing? I've never seen anyone do that before, it was so cool! Do you think he went—" Jarvais grabbed the Asian by his shirt and stared him directly in his eyes.

"If you ever take my bending away again," Jarvais warned, "I will kill you." The bender picked up his sword, putting it back in his sheath and realizing the entire town was still looking at him. "It's been a rough night everyone, just go back home and forget everything that has happened."

The crowd exploded in cheers and gathered around Jarvais and Andrew, lifting them both above their shoulders. Jarvais sighed in frustration, actually wishing for a small lightning bolt, just to get the hell away from all of these people. Andrew cheered along with the exiles, proud at how the stakeout went and the parade he was getting afterwards; boy was Crystal going to be jealous.

* * *

The entire city had shown up at the town square, crowding around the stage where the Mayor would usually address them, but today, Jennifer stood in front of them, holding Elegon and smiling. "I am proud to introduce to you, a miracle that almost parallels to the possible return of the Avatar; these are the last four surviving benders!"

"Earth!" Wesley exploded out of the ground, slamming his foot back into the Earth and forcing a boulder to explode from underneath him. The seismic waves began to vibrate under him and shake the ground, with the crowd cheering in amazement. The Geokinetic slammed his fist together and the boulder broke apart, shattering into thousands of floating pebbles, each one in the size of a small, perfectly round ball and landed in the hands of the exiles.

"Water!" Crystal fell out of the sky, surrounded in a stream of water wrapped around her body. She landed on the ground and willed the water around her into a tornado of liquids. The twister collapsed, only for the Hydrokinetic to raise her hands and turn the water into eight tentacles surrounding her and squirming as if they were alive. She squeezed her hands together in a fist, freezing the water and creating an octopus ice sculpture.

"Air!" Andrew glided over the crowd, sending a powerful breeze after him as he soared into the sky. The Aerokinetic closed his glider, putting it back on his back and spinning around the air, creating a twister and sucking in the nearby clouds and slowly floating back down, making a thin fog appear. He swirled his hands into the fog, watching as the air began to bend around him and spun into a cyclone, returning back into the sky.

"Fire!" Jarvais calmly walked out from behind the stage, not looking at anyone in the crowd. The sound of thunder rumbled as lightning shot down at each footstep he made, walking closer to the other benders. The Pyrokinetic stopped, just as the lightning hit his last footstep and looked at his city. He began to move in a ferocious pattern, mimicking an old style of fighting as the ground around him slowly began to combust into flames. The teenager slammed his foot in the middle of the fire and threw his hands forward into the sky, creating a monster of fiery chaos and sending it straight into the sky.

Everyone gasped in horror as the crimson flames began to slowly morph into a sapphire blaze. Jarvais' face began to sweat with exhaustion as he felt his right forearm exploded with pain and realized the flames were changing colors. He brought his hands down and forced the monster to disperse and only left a cloud of ashes to fall to the ground.

"Leave it to Stone too screw up his own ceremony," Blake teased, with his friends laughing behind him. "If this slacker is what we have left to defend us exiles, we might as well get ready for the Empire to destroy us." Jarvais mouth started to burn with fire, before Andrew put a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down with another smile.

"That was just a fun prank," the Airbender laughed, hoping the exiles would believe him. "In fact, because of Jarvais, we brought down a Detention Center and rescued our friends. Even if the Avatar has gone missing, we promise to keep everyone here safe and protected. The Empire is about to meet there match and soon, the entire world will be freed!" The city screamed into a ruckus cheer at the new hope they were given.

The benders stood in front of them, happy to have brought such a wondrous gift to the group of exiles. Jarvais did his best to look happy, but his forearm was still hurting and as he looked at it, only to realize a black outline of a dragon had now brazened him. His eyes flashed a sense of dread as he felt the mark heat up and began to glow a pale blue. The Firebender covered up the marking, not knowing what else he could do. But, he instantly realized he might be a bigger threat than the Empire to his friends and family.

* * *

_**Next time on Alpha: Book: Fire; Jarvais learns the meaning of his new tattoo and realizes he must learn the secrets of firebending to save himself before its too late; meanwhile, Wesley's pasts comes back in a destructive force and forces a suprising person to stand up to a deadly threat worse than the Empire.**_


End file.
